Matt Light  |
| No. 72 New England Patriots |
| Offensive tackle |
| Personal information |
| Date of birth: June 23, 1978 (1978-06-23) (age 31) |
| Place of birth: Greenville, Ohio |
| Height: 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | Weight: 305 lb (138 kg) |
| Career information |
| College: Purdue |
| NFL Draft: 2001 / Round: 2 / Pick: 48 |
| Debuted in 2001 for the New England Patriots |
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| Career history |
As player:
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| Career highlights and awards |
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| Career NFL statistics as of 2009 |
| Games played | 121 |
| Games started | 119 |
| Fumbles recovered | 2 |
| Stats at NFL.com |
Matthew Charles Light (born June 23, 1978 in Greenville, Ohio) is an American football offensive lineman for the New England Patriots of the National Football League. He was selected with the 48th pick overall in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft out of Purdue University.
[edit] College career
During his time at college, he protected Drew Brees blindside from the left tackle position. Light started all 37 Boilermaker games at tackle from 1998 to 2000 on a Purdue offensive line that allowed just 38 sacks on 1,690 pass attempts. Light was a Consensus All-Big Ten conference first-team (2000) and voted to second-team (1999).
[edit] Professional career
Light started 12 of 14 games during his rookie season in 2001 and helped open holes for the Patriots running game, which averaged 112.2 yards per game He was part of offensive line at left tackle that led the way for 133 yards on 25 carries (5.3 average) in the Patriots 20-17 victory in Super Bowl XXXVI over the St. Louis Rams. He was named to the Football News 2001 NFL All-Rookie Team in 2001.
In Super Bowl XXXVIII, he was instrumental in the Patriots' success against the Carolina Panthers' pass rush; the Patriots did not allow a sack to a very effective defensive line that featured Kris Jenkins, Mike Rucker, Brentson Buckner and Julius Peppers.
Light was a part of an offensive line that enjoyed one of the most successful seasons in club history in 2004, helping the team to average more than four yards per carry for the first time in 19 seasons and helping Corey Dillon set a single season franchise record with 1,635 rushing yards. Arguably his most impressive game came in Super Bowl XXXIX, when he held heralded defensive end Jevon Kearse to just two tackles..
He made the 2007 Pro Bowl replacing the injured Jonathan Ogden, which was Light's first Pro Bowl in his career. On December 18, 2007, he was selected as a starter for the 2008 Pro Bowl, one of eight Patriots players selected. He has recently been in a Super Bowl XLIII commercial with Defensive End Justin Tuck and Linebacker Ray Lewis featuring the South Beach Beverage Company. In the 2008 season, he was ejected from a Patriots-Dolphins game for fighting with Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder, who was also ejected.
[edit] Personal
Matt also has a non-profit foundation called the Matt Light Foundation. Light and his wife Susie have three children: Collin, William and Gracie[1].
[edit] References
[edit] External links
